EXCLUSIVE Pheobe Bishop's mum has been through hell after the alleged murder of her teenage daughter. Now her life has been made even more unbearable - as her family come out on the attack
The cousin of tragic teen Pheobe Bishop has warned the family has had enough of the constant attacks by trolls and conspiracy theorists and pleaded for it to end.
Pheobe's body was found last week in remote bushland near her home in Gin Gin, close to Bundaberg in central Queensland, three weeks after she vanished.
Her former housemates, Tanika Bromley and James Wood, have now been charged with her murder and two counts each of interfering with her corpse.
But Pheobe's mum Kylie Johnson has come under fire from vile anonymous social media trolls attacking her for letting her teenage daughter to live with the couple.
'I hate how cruel people are being,' said Pheobe's cousin Whitney Woodfield in a furious blast at the online critics.
She vehemently defended Pheobe's mother and insisted she was not to blame for her the 17-year-old's death.
'I hate how I see so many people going and attacking not only Kylie, but the rest of our family,' she posted on Facebook.
'Finding ways to blame us when the blame should only be [elsewhere].
'People hide behind their fake accounts and their posts thinking they know every little thing about us, thinking their words have no impact.
'In reality, they would never say it to our faces.'
Pheobe was posted missing on May 15 after failing to check in for her trip from Bundaberg Regional Airport to Western Australia to meet her boyfriend in Perth.
Her body was found last Friday in the remote Good Night Scrub National Park, an hour outside of her hometown.
At a vigil in memory of Pheobe on Sunday evening in Gin Gin, Ms Woodfield told Daily Mail Australia that the family is 'very broken'.
'We are shocked. This has been all over the news and social media,' she said.
Some Gin Gin locals have expressed concern about why the 17-year-old was with Wood and Bromley in a home strewn with rubbish and dog faeces
One IGA worker told Daily Mail Australia she helped Pheobe buy food when she didn't have enough money, fuelling more online criticism against the teen's family.
But Ms Woodfield hit back: 'They think they're being vigilantes for Pheobe, thinking this is what they need to do.
'What they don't know is that Pheobe wouldn't have stood for this behaviour.
'She wouldn't want people to be so focused on blaming her mum, her sister and the rest of her family for this.
'And Kylie, I don't know how you do it, you are one very strong woman. I know Phee would've never blamed you.'
Ms Johnson appeared at the Sunday evening vigil and urged locals 'not to retaliate' against the accused's family and was grateful for Ms Woodfield's support.
'Phee would be livid with this [trolling and conspiracy theories],' Kylie said in reply to the post.
'We as a family know who we are.
'Whitney, Phee would be so proud of you for being so steadfast, loving and strong through this.'
At Sunday's vigil, which was attended by more than 500 people at Gin Gin's Kolan Community Park, Ms Woodfield added: 'We should not remember Pheobe for the tragic ending that she experienced.
'We should remember her for the person, the beautiful soul that she was.'
Pheobe's mum also made a heartbreaking plea to the Gin Gin community to 'respect' Bromley's family in the wake of the murder charges laid against her.
In a show of brave stoicism, Ms Johnson called on the local community to remain peaceful, and said her daughter would want people to show 'compassion'.
'I also want to remind our community - a very important reminder - and this is imperative for our family and for us to move forward in our healing,' she said.
'I know Tanika has been charged. I know her family live within our community and I expect them to receive respect... those kids mean the world to us as a family.
'They meant the world to Pheobe as a family as well. It is imperative to us, as a family, that they are supported just as much as us.
'They are hurting probably more than us, even though we have lost our child.
'But I really need you to know that Pheobe's compassion would have reached that depth.
'There is to be no anger or hate towards that family.'
Pheobe's big sister Kaylea, 18, also paid tribute to her sibling at the vigil, insisting that Pheobe had given the family a 'run for our bloody money' during her short life.
As the memorial came to an end, Kaylea urged mourners to dance: 'Because you know it's what this b***h would do,' she added.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
1989 police probe into murder of John Devine ‘seriously defective'
The 1989 police investigation into the murder of John Devine was 'seriously defective', Northern Ireland's Police Ombudsman has found. The 37-year-old was murdered by loyalists on Fallswater Street in west Belfast on July 23 1989. The father-of-three died after armed men entered his home and shot him a number of times at close range. Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson has highlighted a 'series of failures' in the investigation. These include that a man prosecuted for Mr Devine's murder almost three decades later should have been arrested and interviewed as a suspect at the time. Mrs Anderson's report is also critical of the then police force, the RUC's wider suspect and arrest strategy, which she found resulted in police taking action against only two people on a list of 36 persons of interest, despite intelligence and other information which linked individuals to the murder. The report identifies that house-to-house and witness inquiries were not adequately pursued and led to missed opportunities to gather evidence which may have assisted police to identify suspects or open up lines of inquiry, and that all available forensic opportunities were not fully exploited. The investigation also found no evidence that the RUC alerted Mr Devine to the fact that his date of birth had been linked to the name John Devine, in a document found in two separate loyalist paramilitary intelligence caches. Although the document contained a different address and photo, the police did not consider the potential risk presented to Mr Devine, including whether a 'threat to life' warning was appropriate. 'Given the available evidence and other information gathered during my investigation, I consider the original RUC investigation to be seriously defective, and not capable of leading to the identification of those responsible,' she said. Ms Anderson acknowledged that the RUC investigation of the murder was conducted at a time when policing resources in Troubles-related incidents were stretched and under significant pressure in a year when 81 people died. She also found that there was no specific intelligence available to police that, if acted upon, could have prevented the murder of Mr Devine. The Ombudsman concluded that Mr Devine was the victim of a campaign of sectarian violence mounted against the nationalist community. 'Loyalist paramilitaries alone were responsible for his murder,' she said. 'Given the significant failings in the RUC investigation, I believe that Mr Devine's family were failed by police in their search for the truth regarding the perpetration of his murder.' Solicitor Padraig O Muirigh, who acts for Mr Devine's family, said they welcome the findings of the Ombudsmans' report. 'Mrs Anderson has concluded that the failings in the RUC investigation of Mr Devine's murder were so fundamental that the murder investigation was 'incapable of detecting potential offenders and supporting a prosecution',' he said. 'There were a litany of serious deficiencies identified in the Police Ombudsman investigation including a failure of RUC Special Branch to disseminate intelligence to the police investigation team, the failure to arrest and interview key suspects and multiple forensic shortcomings. 'These findings are a damning indictment of the RUC investigation into John Devine's murder. 'The breadth and nature of these failings cannot be explained by mere incompetence. 'The Devine family have a long-held view that those involved in the murder were protected from prosecution by the RUC and that the security forces colluded with loyalist paramilitaries. 'That view has been reinforced by these findings. The Devine family commend Mrs Anderson and her staff for the diligent investigation they have conducted.'
BreakingNews.ie
3 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
1989 police probe into murder of John Devine ‘seriously defective'
The 1989 police investigation into the murder of John Devine was 'seriously defective', Northern Ireland's Police Ombudsman has found. The 37-year-old was murdered by loyalists on Fallswater Street in west Belfast on July 23rd, 1989. Advertisement The father-of-three died after armed men entered his home and shot him a number of times at close range. Police Ombudsman Marie Anderson has highlighted a 'series of failures' in the investigation. These include that a man prosecuted for Mr Devine's murder almost three decades later should have been arrested and interviewed as a suspect at the time. Mrs Anderson's report is also critical of the then police force, the RUC's wider suspect and arrest strategy, which she found resulted in police taking action against only two people on a list of 36 persons of interest, despite intelligence and other information which linked individuals to the murder. Advertisement The report identifies that house-to-house and witness inquiries were not adequately pursued and led to missed opportunities to gather evidence which may have assisted police to identify suspects or open up lines of inquiry, and that all available forensic opportunities were not fully exploited. The investigation also found no evidence that the RUC alerted Mr Devine to the fact that his date of birth had been linked to the name John Devine, in a document found in two separate loyalist paramilitary intelligence caches. Although the document contained a different address and photo, the police did not consider the potential risk presented to Mr Devine, including whether a 'threat to life' warning was appropriate. Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland Marie Anderson said she believed the family of John Devine had been 'failed' by police (Liam McBurney/PA) 'Given the available evidence and other information gathered during my investigation, I consider the original RUC investigation to be seriously defective, and not capable of leading to the identification of those responsible,' she said. Advertisement Ms Anderson acknowledged that the RUC investigation of the murder was conducted at a time when policing resources in Troubles-related incidents were stretched and under significant pressure in a year when 81 people died. She also found that there was no specific intelligence available to police that, if acted upon, could have prevented the murder of Mr Devine. The Ombudsman concluded that Mr Devine was the victim of a campaign of sectarian violence mounted against the nationalist community. 'Loyalist paramilitaries alone were responsible for his murder,' she said. Advertisement 'Given the significant failings in the RUC investigation, I believe that Mr Devine's family were failed by police in their search for the truth regarding the perpetration of his murder.' Solicitor Padraig O Muirigh (Rebecca Black/PA) Solicitor Padraig O Muirigh, who acts for Mr Devine's family, said they welcome the findings of the Ombudsmans' report. 'Mrs Anderson has concluded that the failings in the RUC investigation of Mr Devine's murder were so fundamental that the murder investigation was 'incapable of detecting potential offenders and supporting a prosecution',' he said. 'There were a litany of serious deficiencies identified in the Police Ombudsman investigation including a failure of RUC Special Branch to disseminate intelligence to the police investigation team, the failure to arrest and interview key suspects and multiple forensic shortcomings. Advertisement 'These findings are a damning indictment of the RUC investigation into John Devine's murder. 'The breadth and nature of these failings cannot be explained by mere incompetence. 'The Devine family have a long-held view that those involved in the murder were protected from prosecution by the RUC and that the security forces colluded with loyalist paramilitaries. 'That view has been reinforced by these findings. The Devine family commend Mrs Anderson and her staff for the diligent investigation they have conducted.'
The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
Where is The Orkney Assassin Michael Ross now?
THE Orkney Assassin, Michael Ross, was just 15 years old when he murdered waiter Shamsuddin Mahmood. On June 2 1994, Ross shot the waiter while he served customers in an Indian restaurant in Orkney, an island located off the northern coast of Scotland. Where is Michael Ross now? Michael Ross, born on 28 August 1978, was found guilty of the murder in 2008 and is serving a life sentence in HMP Shotts in Lanarkshire, with a minimum of 25 years. Ross was originally questioned by police six months after the murder of the 26-year-old waiter, but prosecutors ruled there was not enough evidence to charge the teenager. In the following summer, Ross left the island of Orkney, where he was born, and 17 joined the Scottish regiment. From there, he progressed through the ranks and became a decorated Black Watch sniper after serving a tour of duty in Iraq. But on June 20 2008, he was brought to justice in the High Court in Glasgow. During his guilty verdict, Ross, dramatically tried to flee by jumping out of the dock and knocking over the security guard. Now 47 years old, Ross has tried to escape HMP Shotts, one of Scotland's highest security prisons, three times, including an attempt to scale the fence in 2018. As a result, he was sentenced to two years in prison to run alongside his life term of which he has served 17 years so far. What happened to Shamsuddin Mahmood? The murder of Shamsuddin Mahmood took place on June 2, 1994 when he was fatally shot after a man wearing a balaclava entered Mumataz Restaurant in Kirkwall at around 7.10pm and exited the premises shortly after. Shamsuddin had arrived in Orkney only six weeks before and had plans to return to Bangladesh to marry his fiancée. Shamsuddin's murder was the first to take place on the island in 25 years and during the original investigation, 2,736 statements were taken. Ross' mother Moira, recounted the time Michael came home from the police station when he was 16 years old. She went upstairs and asked whether he had shot Shamsuddin six months before, which he denied. During the investigation, Edmund Ross' career as a police officer ended after he lied about the fact that he owned identical bullets to those used in the murder weapon. Edmund Ross was subsequently jailed for four years in 1997 for perverting the course of justice. It is reported that Michael Ross' earliest possible release is in 2035. How to watch The Orkney Assassin: Murder In The Isles Amazon Prime Video has released a special titled The Orkney Assassin: Murder In The Isles, providing insight from law enforcement officers, eyewitnesses, journalists, and also interviews with Ross' parents, who maintain his innocence. The first episode aired on Sunday, June 8 2025.
